Vice President Kamala Harris has accused former President Donald Trump of reneging on his commitment to a Sept. 10 presidential debate, asserting her preparedness for the event.
“I’m ready to debate Donald Trump. I have agreed to the previously agreed upon Sept. 10 debate. He agreed to that previously. Now it appears he’s backpedaling,” Harris told reporters after returning to Washington following her speech at the American Federation of Teachers in Houston. “But I’m ready. And I think the voters deserve to see the split-screen that exists in this race on a debate stage. And so I’m ready. Let’s go.”
Initially, Trump and President Biden, who was still a candidate at the time, agreed in May to participate in two presidential debates.
The first debate, hosted by CNN, took place on June 27, and the second was scheduled for Sept. 10, to be hosted by ABC News.
Biden’s underwhelming performance in the first debate led to widespread calls for him to withdraw from the race, culminating in his announcement on Sunday that he would forgo his campaign for a second term.
Following Biden’s exit, Harris announced her candidacy and swiftly garnered the support of the majority of delegates required to secure the Democratic nomination.
Trump had previously stated his willingness to debate Harris and even suggested facing off against her “more than once.”
However, he recently expressed on his social media platform that he believes the debate should be hosted by Fox News instead of ABC News, branding ABC as “fake news” and a “joke.”
Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung commented on Thursday evening, stating, “General election debate details cannot be finalized until Democrats formally decide on their nominee.”
